A Raven's Dark Wing
by BurningSins
Summary: Raven was born amongst a band of rogues who have a dangerous thirst for blood. She is fierce, yet is drowned in everlasting misery and continuous pain. One day she is exiled for a crime that she didn't commit and is forced into becoming a loner. She ends up meeting Clan cats and is taken under their wing. Will she be able to get over her past, or will it continue to haunt her?
1. Prologue: The Birth

A dark ginger she-cat held back a cry of agony as spasms racked her body. Figures loomed over her and made no move to help the she-cat. Their faces were blank and their eyes were emotionless.

_Ungrateful rat-hearts! I'm giving them new fighters, they should have the respect to help me while I bear them! _The she-cat thought angrily and glared upwards at the figures with hatred-filled green eyes. They merely stared down at me with their emotionless stare.

Multiple spasms rippled across the she-cat's round belly causing unbearable pain to ride through her body. She wasn't able to hold back the wail that bubbled in her mouth and it bounced against the walls of the den. That's when the first kit slid out, a silver tabby tom. She reached over to grasp the small fur-ball and began to vigorously lick the tom. Her muscles strained when another spasm shook her and another kit appeared, a ginger tabby tom. She placed the silver tabby at her belly and craned her neck to grab onto the second kit's scruff.

"How is the pathetic scrap of fur?" The she-cat glanced upwards at the bitter words and noticed a dark gray tabby thrusting his way through the other figures, his ice-blue eyes were narrowed to slits and they were only glimmering with hostility.

"I'm quite fine," the she-cat hissed and he glared downwards at her, his eyes slightly brightened upon seeing the two toms and a devilish gleam passed through his eyes.

"They will be perfect, two strong toms coming into the world," he merely purred before turning and shouldering his way back through the figures, which turned to follow him.

_Rat-heart, he's just worried about having someone to shed blood beside! _ She inwardly growled and suddenly another spasm ripped through her, her muscles tightened and felt another kit slide out. It was a completely black she-kit, she was small though, not as big as her brothers. She reached over and gently grabbed her by the scruff, she set her down at her belly.

All three of the kits were healthy and were happily suckling. The she-cat's rolled back against the ground and felt weariness wash over her. Kitting was extremely tiring and extremely painful. She couldn't believe she was forced to. Now she was just going to be casted aside in the shadow of her two sons. They were the next leaders and were going to bring more destruction down on the band.

The thing that worried her was that the black she-kit was going to end up getting killed. She was small and didn't have much muscle. She would _never _make it in a world that she's being brought into. It wasn't fair and the mother wished she could take her kit out of it. Her father would dis her and brothers would most likely not care for her. But only time will tell, maybe the black she-kit would become strong and live through this mess.


	2. Chapter 1: The Cold Plan

"Raven stop you're hurting me!" The ginger tom scrambled helplessly under the black she-cat's weight and the she-cat let out a bitter hiss at the weak tom. She may be small, but she was stronger than the tom.

"Weakling, I'm surprised father doesn't slit your neck," Raven curled her lips back in a fierce snarl before leaping off of her brother, the tom lay motionless on the ground. Scarlet dripped onto the concrete from the minor neck wound and Raven let out a snort of disgust.

Raven was considered a high-ranked member of The Blood Alliances, while her brother was lower than the low. He was scared of the dogs that wondered about in the allies and the bloody fights that broke out amongst us, he was scrawny and seemed to be shrinking in size. She was surprised that her father hadn't killed him yet, or that he hasn't gotten himself killed.

Her other brother though was just like her, high-ranked and blood-thirsty. He was bigger and stronger than her, he would usually beat her in their little "play fights". She would usually earn a new nick in the ear or a new scar on her shoulder, she didn't mind though. Their father, who was their band leader, favored them and would snap at their weaker brother. She bet he was planning something to "set him straight".

"Raven, I brought you a rat," the black she-cat turned her attention to the she-cat who stood behind her, her dull green eyes were emotionless and her dark ginger pelt was matted with blood.

"Mother, what happened? Did you get into a fight?" Raven anxiously sniffed at her mother's pelt and a rough purr rumbled in the old she-cat's throat.

"Just Silver teaching me a lesson, I didn't bring him enough prey," the ginger she-cat casually shrugged and set the rat Raven's paws. Silver was second-command in their band, he would viciously attack the scavengers' who didn't bring enough food for the fighters'. He was a hostile and dangerous cat, most of them were, but he just seemed the worst out of every cat.

"You take it, I'll say I've already eaten," Raven meowed softly and gently pushed the dead creature over to her mother's paws. It was against the rules to give a scavenger food before the fighters have eaten, but she didn't care. Her mother's ribs were visible through her pelt and she almost looked like a pile of bones, her once bright green eyes were now just a dull hue of green, they almost looked dead.

Her mother blinked gratefully at her before lowering her muzzle to grasp onto the rat, the dark-colored she-cat ran off before anyone saw and a heavy sigh escaped through Raven's mouth. She cared for her mother and so did her two brothers, but no one else did, especially their father. Her mother told her that he casted her aside after she and her brothers were born. Her mother has been a scavenger since that night.

Raven's ears perked upwards when she heard a yowl echo against the stone walls of the alley, her eyes traveled around her and noticed her father standing on the dumpster with narrowed blue eyes, she also noticed a small gray tom standing at the base. Silver had the tom pinned, one tabby paw placed on his throat. The gray tom must be a trespasser, which means he will be killed.

"Please, I'll leave! I won't ever come back!" The small tom cried out a plea but Shard gave no mercy, he lashed his tail at Silver and in a split second the gray tom lay motionless on the ground, a pool of blood circling the body. Silver flicked the blood off his paw and bent down to drag the body away. Prey for the dogs.

Raven felt her father's gaze land on her and she felt a purr rumble in her throat as she padded over to him. He leaped down from the dumpster and rubbed his muzzle affectionately against her cheek, she ran her tongue over his chin feeling warmth pump in her. She didn't completely enjoy the feeling, though it felt comforting.

"Daughter, what have you accomplished today?" Shard backed away and he stared at her expecting a long story on how she killed a dog and how she fed a cat to a dog, but all she did today was beat up her brother.

"Nothing I propose?" He tipped his head impatiently and Raven slightly curled her lips back, her father always needed an answer right away or else his pelt would begin to tingle.

"I beat up Ember today," his blue eyes brightened upon hearing her words and a prideful purr arose in the tom's throat.

"That cat needs to be taught a lesson, a lesson of living here," Shard bitterly snarled and Raven nodded her head in agreement, sure he was her brother but he was weak and helpless. If a dog was running after him, he would shudder and fall to the ground.

"Maybe you could teach him that lesson," Shard whispered and he stole a glance behind her, she slowly followed his gaze and she saw Ember happily licking our mother's ears with such gentleness. Our mother looked so pleased and happy herself, Raven could hear purrs rumbling in the old she-cat's throat.

"And we need to do something about her," Raven stiffened when she felt her father's warm breath on her ears, she whipped around to face him with narrowed eyes. He couldn't possibly be saying that we should kill her? He knew how close she and her brothers were to her!

"We are not killing her," Raven meowed coolly not wanting to cause a big commotion and Shard stared at her with eyes like ice, she noticed his fur slowly begin to bristle and she felt her claws flex, prepared to fight if he decided to attack.

He hesitated for a moment before finally letting his fur lay flat and he seemed reluctant to dip his head, "fine we won't kill that pile of bones, but you're still going to fight Ember."

Raven heaved a sigh of relief as Shard turned to stalk away, she knew he wasn't happy that she stuck up for her mother. She hated that he hated her and she wanted to claw some sense into him sometimes. Though he had sense when it came to Ember, if she fought him it would _hopefully _make him stronger. Her brother needed to understand that the streets weren't meant for puny cats like him. You needed to be fierce and brave out here, especially in their group. The streets were more dangerous than all of them put together, every tooth and claw had some job here. And every cat had a job.


	3. Chapter 2: A Dark Night

Dark clouds rolled over the once clear blue sky like waves cascading over the shore. Thunder rumbled deep within the clouds while lightning lit up the darkening sky, creating a light show. Rain was slow to fall from the clouds, but it gradually became faster and harder. Cold winds blew through the rain and directed the falling drops sideways.

Raven shifted uncomfortably in her nest, the wind was ruffling her fur and the rain was pattering against her skin. The thunder cracked outside making it very difficult to sleep. She was reluctant to get up though, considering she was somewhat comfortable in her nest.

She heaved a heavy sigh and pushed herself to her paws, her muscles still ached from earlier and as she took a step forward she nearly fell back down. Shard had been training her today and seemed to have pushed her too hard. He said she needed to be able to beat Ember with a flick of a paw, though he also said that Ember would probably coward and run off.

Raven shook her head as she ducked underneath the low-hanging tendrils that ran along the wall of the abandoned two-leg den that was the place where the fighters slept. Raven thought that one day the whole den would just crumble and fall apart, crushing every cat that lie underneath. The den had cracks zigzagging across the sides and long vines poked in between the cracks. Not one cat knew how long it has been here, some say it has been here since the two-legs first came.

"Can't sleep?" Raven turned and narrowed her eyes against the darkness, she noticed the large outline of a cat emerging from the entrance and she immediately recognized who it was.

"Isn't it obvious, Flame?" Raven waved her tail around her and an amused purr arose in the large tom's throat, his ears were flat on his head against the rain while his fur fluffed against the bitter winds.

"Well, it appears your father can't either," Flame motioned his tail towards the dumpster and Raven followed the tip of his tail, she noticed the silhouette of the dumpster and the outline of her father, she also noticed another shape but she had to narrow her eyes against the rain to see clearly.

It was Ember.

"Father, please let me go!" Raven had to strain to hear the trembling voice of her brother and she could hear a fierce snarl escape from Shard's mouth.

A flash of lightning lit up the whole area and Raven saw her father standing over Ember, his eyes were blazing with so much ferocity that it almost made her flinch and Ember's once ginger pelt was now scarlet. Was Shard killing him?!

"Father, stop!" Raven darted forward leaving a confused Flame to stare after her, her paws thundered along with the rain roughly bouncing off of the concrete.

She launched herself up onto the dumpster and shoved her father off of her brother, the dark tabby stumbled sideways and sent a glare at her. She curled her lips back in the beginning of a snarl and suddenly Shard's glare became a prideful gaze.

"I'm sorry Raven, you may go ahead," the gray tabby lashed his tail at Ember who was staring up at the two with wide terrified eyes.

Raven angrily lashed her tail before turning to her brother, his fur was matted with blood and his body was trembling with fear. _Weakling. _Raven let out a snort of disgust and jumped on top of Ember, her claws slid out from their sockets and she began to rake her claws down his flank. He let out a cry of agony and struggled underneath of her, his back paws pushing into her belly while his front paws flailed around, attempting to latch his claws into skin. A bitter hiss escaped from Raven as she turned to snap her jaws around one ginger paw, the tom let out a shriek as she bit down harder.

"Stop playing around, Raven!" Shard snarled behind her and she released her grip on his paw, this time she placed her paws on his neck and pressed down. Ember's eyes grew wider to the point where if they grew anymore they would pop out of his head.

"End it, Raven," she felt her father's breath in her ear and she felt her muscles tighten, she wasn't planning on killing him and her father never said anything about killing him.

She shook her head to clear her mind and she lifted a paw off Ember's throat, thunder boomed in the distance and the rain seemed to fall quicker, but for only a few seconds, enough time for her to score her claws across his throat. He tried to let out a shriek but it only came out as a terrible gurgling noise. Raven's paws were painted scarlet while the ground around Ember was becoming crimson. Her father looked pride fully up at her while Raven kept her eyes focused on her brother's withering body, his eyes were still wide and his body was still trembling. His green eyes were becoming clouded and his quickened breathes were slowing down.

"Good job, Raven, you taught him the lesson he needed to learn," Raven felt her father's tail run down her spine and she turned to look at him. His eyes were cold yet full of delight, one less pest to worry about and he was obviously happy about it.

"The others will know tomorrow, they will be happy about it," his words were drowned about by the pouring rain and Raven felt everything go quiet. She felt a weird emotion churning up inside of her, but she didn't understand what it was. She could feel her stomach become knots, wrapped up in an unknown emotion.

It wasn't guilt right? You're not allowed to feel guilt or regret out here. You're supposed to be heart-less and cruel, you shouldn't feel pain when you kill another. You're supposed to feel pleasure not sorrow. _Is something wrong with me?_


	4. Chapter 3: A Broken Wing

Dawn light seeped through the holes of the run down den and Raven wanted to shift over so that it only pressed against her back. Her muscles ached from last night and her mind was fuzzy, she still felt that churning in her stomach from last night as she stared down at Ember's motionless body. It continued to bother her, she didn't understand it, and it even was spreading to her heart. She felt it touch each vein and make it feel the emotion. She was turning it around for the rest of the night until she was able to finally close her eyes, but it also haunted her dreams. She was standing in a river of blood, a trail of dead bodies behind her. Two specific caught her eye, Ember and Scarlet. They were lying mangled and crippled at her paws, staring cloudy-eyed up at her. Their faces twisted in a silent yowl of pain, along with the other bodies.

Raven suppressed a shiver and reluctantly pushed herself to her paws, her muscles seemed to let out a defiant hiss and sent pain through her body. She growled in frustration and stalked toward the entrance, she could push past the pain because either way she needed to be awake. Shard said that he wanted her to fight today and she needed to be prepared. Though, as she slipped past the tendrils she noticed a large circle of cats by the dumpster. It was obvious she was last to wake. She had no time to stretch out her muscles and relax them, or practice. She was going to be thrown into a fight with weary bones.

"Raven, nice to see you finally got up!" Shard greeted her with a sneer and snickers arose from the group of cats, she held back the angry snarl that began to bubble in her throat and she dipped her head at her father in greeting.

"You are going up against Slash," Shard motioned his tail over to the dark gray tom who was planted beside Frost, the tom's green eyes lit up at the mentioning of his name and when he turned to Raven his eyes instantly turned cold.

"Hope you've come prepared, little-bird," Slash's bitter hiss mixed with the hostility in his eyes made Raven slightly flinch, his long claws scraped along the concrete as he made his way over to her and she felt her fur begin to bristle. She always won the fights and she was never like this, she was never _afraid. _

Raven unsheathed her claws and curled her lips back in a menacing snarl, the tom merely sneered before lunging forward. Raven ducked forward under his outstretched paws and leaped into his stomach. The gray tom gasped as the two landed on the ground with a _thud! _Slash lay breathing deeply trying to regain his breath while Raven stood over him with burning muscles, her teeth gritted as the burning sensation coursed through her.

"Come on Raven!" It was the irritated hiss that came from Shard and she didn't realize in time that Slash had regained his breath, he managed to throw her off with a shove of a few paws and she scrambled backwards, trying not to lose balance.

Raven was about to get back at Slash but she felt his claws dig into her pelt, his weight knocked her downwards and she felt her muzzle being pushed down onto the concrete while claws dug into her neck. She struggled and for the first time felt helpless, her body was failing her. She seemed like she couldn't fight back. She could hear the disgusted snorts coming from Slash as his claws sliced deeper. _If he goes deeper, he might end up killing me. _The thought flooded her mind and she felt her paws flail in front of her, she desperately searched for her claws to latch onto.

"You're weak, little-bird," she felt Slash's breath tickle her ear and she felt her claws find his neck, she let out a screech and began to claw fiercely at his skin. She felt anger bubble up insider of her, she _couldn't _be weak, and she wasn't weak!

Raven ignored her tightened muscles as she shoved her paws into his belly, she surprisingly managed to haul the tom off of her and she heard an angry growl rise in the tom's throat.

She lifted herself to her paws and faced the tom, pain was now all over her body and she could feel her blood ooze out of her scratches and down through her fur. Her muscles were burning like fire now and her breathes were rapid as she stared at Slash. The tom stared at her with pure hatred glittering in his eyes and his lean muscles rippled underneath his pelt, preparing to continue the fight.

"Stop," Shard's voice broke the silence and the dark gray tom leaped gracefully down from his position on the dumpster, cats crouched in respect as he passed by them and Raven could see the pride glimmering in his cold, blue eyes.

"It's clear that we have a victor," Shard beckoned his tail to Slash and yowls of triumph escaped from the other band members, Slash lifted his chin pride-fully and Raven could see him staring at her out of the corner of his eye, she could see the cold and disgust passing through them.

"And it's clear we have a loser," the cheers died down as Shard turned to Raven, he glared down at her with angered, narrowed eyes. She crouched lowly to the ground feeling her father's gaze harden on her. Disappointment was also seen in his eyes, which made Raven feel ashamed. Of course, she loved making her father proud of her and seeing that pride glow in those blue eyes. But today, they were cold and full of disappointment.

_I am weak. I need to make him know that I'm strong. I don't want to end up like Ember. Today was just a lesson, tomorrow is a new day. I'll work every tooth and claw to make him happy. I made a mistake today, and tomorrow I'll clean it up. I'll make everyone respect me again. I will make Shard happy at any cost..._

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**I promise I'll add more of the other cats in the next chapters! ^^;  
**

**Also, continue to submit more cats to the Clans, it is greatly appreciated! :) **


	5. Chapter 4: Prey

The rising sun casted long shadows across the large twoleg nests. The rays poked through the cracks in the old den and found their way to Raven's pelt, the black she-cat stretched out, trying to gather in as much warmth as possible. Early new-leaf wasn't generally warm and usually brought chilly days, but today was unusually warm. Today would be good to bask in the sun's warmth.

A delighted purr rumbled in Raven's throat as she rolled over to lie on her back, the rays rested on her belly, she didn't feel like getting up. She was perfectly content here, especially after yesterday. Every cat had cast her aside after the fight. They sent her glares of disappointment and snapped at her, they also called her weak. She wanted to rip out the throats of each one of them, though she knew that wasn't sensible. She continued to tell herself that she will get her revenge soon. Even her wounds still stung. One of our allies, Persephonie, had visited and offered to help patch up Raven's wounds, though Shard had immediately turned down her help, saying that Raven's wounds needed to heal naturally.

"Raven!" Raven groaned in annoyance when she heard her father's call, she certainly didn't want to get up now. Why couldn't she have one day of peace for once?

Raven lifted herself to her paws and arched her back in a soothing stretch, she stifled a large yawn and wearily padded to the entrances. Her body felt much better than yesterday and the knot in her belly seemed to have untangled, her aching muscles seemed to have loosened and her wounds didn't sting as much. She heaved a heavy sigh as she ducked underneath the tendrils, the sun immediately stuck its rays down on her back and a purr arose in her throat. _So warm, so comforting._ Raven inwardly purred and held back the urge to fall to the ground to bask in the warmth.

"Raven, sleeping all day again?" Shard's bitter hiss rang in her ears and she was pulled out of her happiness, she flexed her claws as she dared to look upwards. Bitter cold eyes. She wanted to shrink downwards to avert the gazes that were sent her way but she knew that she would look cowardly. _Why am I so weak now? What's wrong with me?_

"You should learn to keep your mouth shut, Shard," Raven bared her teeth in a growl and many gasps of shock rippled through the group of cats, Shard's eyes narrowed for a moment and he sneered.

"What are you going to do? Slit my throat? Cut out my tongue?!" Snickers. Bitter snickers. They laughed like Raven was playing, she scraped her claws along the concrete, forcing herself not to lunge at her father. She would end up getting killed if she did manage to kill him.

"Words aren't going to make you strong, Raven," Slash chuckled and she could hear the harshness that edged in his growl, oh how good would it feel to dig her claws into his neck. Feel his blood seep in between her toes and see the terror pulsing through his wide green eyes.

"Flame, take Raven, Blade, and Jacko out on a patrol," Shard finally stopped snickering like an idiot and Raven felt slightly relived, she won't have to deal with her father and Slash for a while, but she will have to tolerate Blade.

"Why do I have to deal with such a weak _bird_?" Blade laughed as Raven wove her way around the cats, she could feel their teeth just barely miss her pelt and felt their hot breath on her ears. She didn't understand why she was so hated after one failed fight. Was it because they were following Shard? Sharing their snickers and sneers with him. _Bitter tongues._

"Shut up, Blade!" Jacko snapped at the she-cat and Raven blinked gratefully at the tom, Flame and Jacko seemed like the only two who understood her. They were sensible enough to understand her.

The tortoiseshell she-cat snorted in annoyance before running ahead of the small group, Raven could hear the growl bubble in Jacko's throat and she rested a comforting tail on his shoulder. The ginger and black tom heaved a heavy sigh before slowing his pace to fall to the back. Raven now stood beside Flame who only stared forward with dull blue eyes, she could see the weariness edging in their depths and she remembered that Shard had made him stay up all night to patrol their territory. The large ginger tom was also slightly stumbling, Raven thought that his paws must be burning and his muscles must be aching.

_Shard is such an idiot sometimes! _Raven inwardly hissed and felt her long claws scrape angrily along the concrete. Shard should learn how to respect his 'fighters', considering the fact that they put their lives on the line to protect their group. He's just a selfish tom, too stuck up to see past his own nose!

Distracted among her thoughts, Raven hadn't noticed that Blade had come to a halt and rammed right into the tortoiseshell's haunches. She could hear the irritated snarl that rumbled in the she-cat's throat and she could feel the piercing, hatred-filled amber eyes turn on her.

"Pay attention, idiot!" Blade snapped and Raven slinked backwards, not wanting to be anywhere close to the aggravated she-cat. Raven knew that she shouldn't be around the tortoiseshell when she's angry, because she would immediately regret it. Raven honestly was slightly frightened of her, only because she heard that Blade had once ripped a defenseless kit apart and a passing rogue had been brutally slaughtered by her. It sent shivers up Raven's spine.

Suddenly, a loud clanking noise made Raven's fur stand on end. All four cats' attention turned to a large, brown dog that was sniffing around at a fallen trash can. Raven felt her stomach knot in fear when the dog's black eyes turned to them. Its dark eyes seemed to have brightened in excitement and it ran forward, it tongue flailed in the wind and Raven arched her back as she let out a loud, defiant hiss. Blade however didn't stand back, the tortoiseshell she-cat let out a yowl and lunged forward, her claws extended towards the dog's muzzle.

"Blade!" Flame let out a cry when the dog's jaws clamped over the she-cat's paw, she let out a shriek of pain as the dog began to fling her around. She was just prey. She was its chew-toy.

Raven let out a battle cry and bounded forward, her knot of fear seemed to have been untangled by wild excitement. Of course fighting dogs was extremely dangerous and she could easily be killed, but the excitement and pleasure she felt when her claws pierced the dogs skin. _This is how I'll show them that I'm not weak! Beating a dog always showed some sort of bravery and courageousness. _

The black she-cat leaped upwards and aimed for the dog's throat, it was too busy flinging Blade around and bucking upwards in attempt of throwing Flame off to notice her running towards it.

Raven felt her forepaws entwine around the dog's neck and her teeth dig into the dog's throat, the brown dog let out a loud, ear-splitting cry causing its grip on Blade's paw to loosen. The she-cat went plummeting to the ground and landed with a _THUD! _Raven felt her heart twist when she could see the she-cat lying crippled on the ground, her paw looked so mangled it nearly made Raven gag and blood began to surround the tortoiseshell.

The dog thrashed its head around viciously and Raven felt her grip tighten around the dog, she felt the dog's blood pour into her mouth and a bitter laugh bubbled in her throat. _Idiotic dog! It was stupid enough to come after us! _Raven thought harshly and felt her excitement knot up inside her. She wasn't afraid of a stupid dog! She could easily dodge its snapping jaws and its large paws. _It's idiotic to think it can beat us! _

Raven felt the dog go limp under her jaws and triumph pulsed through her. Her claws slid back and she released her jaws around its neck, but instead of crumbling to the ground the dog let out a provoked snarl and snapped its jaws at her. Its canines barely missed her muzzle. Raven felt confusion run through her as she scrunched away from the dog. _It went limp! It was dead! _

The brown dog curled its lips back to reveal sharp, yellow, thorn-sharp teeth and Raven did the same. Arching her back, she fluffed out her fur and began to angrily spit and hiss at the dog. She didn't intimidate it though. It lunged forward and Raven felt terror pulse through her when she felt its paw whack the side of her head, she stumbled and felt her mind go fuzzy for a split second before getting knocked back into reality when she was shoved sideways. Jacko had pushed her aside and had leaped at the dog, the ginger and black tom had his grip on the dog's head. It gave Raven time to regain her sense and her mind to clear.

"Raven, there's another dog!" But before she could leap into battle again the yowl filled her ears. Time seemed to stop around her when she felt jaws clasp around her frame, pain seared through her body and she could feel sticky liquid find its way through her fur. _Such unbearable pain! _She cried inside of her mind, holding back the agonized shriek that bubbled in her throat.

"Raven!" A cry echoed in her ears and she felt the pressure loosen around her back, the dog's canines were released from her and she felt herself smack against the concrete, causing a burning pain to ride up her veins. Her blood dripped off of her pelt and onto the ground below her, and she could feel blood drip from her lips. She could see Blade lying across from her, the tortoiseshell was limp and motionless while surrounded in a pool of blood, and Raven guessed she was dead.

Raven felt everything around her blur and her body become numb, everything seemed frozen. Her veins. Her muscles. Her body. Everything. Her vision seemed to be blackening and she strained to see what was going on, but every time she tried to move only unbearable pain made its way through her. _Am I dying? I-I can't be! I needed to prove my worth to my father! _

The last thing she heard was the battle cries of Flame and Jacko as they fought off the dogs. Raven felt weariness way down on her and complete darkness flooded her vision. She felt every part of her body loosen and her pain slowly ebb away.

_I wonder who will miss me. I wonder who will cry to the skies for me, begging to the Gods why they took me. I knew Scarlet would, Flame would, Jacko would, maybe even Ash. But Shard and everyone else would just shrug and say I was too weak. _

_I was just a weak little-bird. _

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**Hmm, so maybe Raven has a little bit of personality issues?  
**

**Is Raven, Flame, Jacko, and Blade going to end up getting killed in the fight? Or will help be able to come in time?**

**QOTD: Who's your favorite character so far? **

**Remember, I am still accepting submissions for Clan cats over at "Create a Cat" Come quick!**


	6. Chapter 5: Crimson

"_They were all idiotic to go up against those dogs!"_

"_That is what fighters are supposed to do! They fight dogs that threaten our safety!" _

"_At least all four of them survived! You should be grateful for that!"_

"_When she awakes she can explain!"_

"_I think she is waking up now!"_

Raven groaned in pain as she blinked open her eyes, she immediately felt immense pain surge through her and she gritted her teeth to hold back a cry that dared to enter her mouth. She heard a sneer and she glared upwards at who made the mocking noise, she noticed her brother, Persephonie, Silver, and of course Shard. She knew her father sneered at her, she knew she must look helpless lying here, weak and useless.

"Throwing three good fighters into a useless fight 'eh?" Shard spat and Raven winced when she felt his claws score across her muzzle, she snarled and snapped her teeth at his paw in attempts to crush down on his bone, but he quickly pulled it away with a snicker.

"What happened to you, Raven? You've turned so weak so quickly," Silver rounded behind her and she felt his tail smack her face as he circled back to stand beside Shard.

"I'm not weak! I fought against a dog and managed to survive didn't I?" Raven hissed and struggled to sit up, she wanted to show to her father that she was perfectly fit and capable of returning to the ruthless fights, but she merely stumbled and she fell back into the same position she was before.

"Raven, stop pushing yourself," Persephonie stepped forward and placed a gentle tail on Raven's shoulder, the black-she-cat wanted to shake away pale tail though seeing the menacing glow in Shard's icy eyes the tail almost seemed comforting.

"Is she alright? Is she awake?" Raven's ears perked at a familiar voice and she felt joy run up through her veins when a dark ginger face appeared in between Shard and Silver, her mother's eyes brightened and the ginger she-cat shoved her way past the two toms to reach Raven. The black she-cat was immediately covered in licks and she could hear the happy purrs that continuously rumbled in Scarlet's throat.

"I am so glad that you are okay! I thought you were not going to wake up!" Scarlet rasped her tongue over Raven's ears and she felt purrs bubble in her throat. It was so nice to have a parent who actually cares about her, whenever Raven got hurt Shard would only shrug and turn away. Shard would love on her and tell her that she will be able to fight soon.

"Oh, you must be starved after everything that happened!" When her mother said that Raven realized that her stomach has been aching, Scarlet let out an amused-filled purr and lifted herself to her paws.

"I caught a rat earlier, I will bring it to you," Scarlet meowed and turned to walk towards the abandoned den but Shard shoved her backwards, causing the frail she-cat to stumble and nearly falling backwards into Raven.

"She is _not _going to eat, the stronger fighters deserve to eat," Shard bitterly snarled and Raven could see the rage that burned in her mother's green eyes, the dark ginger she-cat's claws flexed and Raven knew that her mother wanted to rip out Shard's throat. Scarlet may look weak and frail, but hiding behind her fragile body was a protective and fierce mother.

"Shard, that is a little too harsh. Raven deserves to be treated equally, considering she is a fighter," Ash stepped forward before Scarlet could do anything she might regret and Raven blinked gratefully at her brother, he was amongst the cats who casted her aside and didn't seem to care about her. Though, now she could see the fury that glowed in the depths of his blue eyes.

Shard hesitated for a moment, he was glaring straight into Scarlet's eyes and both had an equal amount of rage glowing in them. It's hard to believe that once they actually _loved _each other. Shard's ambition and cruelness must have gotten the better of him, and all ever wanted was warriors. He didn't want some she-cat to get in his way of power. Scarlet was never as bad and cold as Shard, she was once a fighter but Raven always guessed that Scarlet grew weak after she gave birth to her and her littermates, and was forced into becoming a scavenger.

"Fine, but I better see her up and moving by tomorrow," Shard lashed his tail indignantly and turned to stalk away, Silver quickly followed with Ash on his paws. That left Raven with her mother and Persephonie.

"I will go fetch the rat for you," the pale-colored she-cat turned to run over to the abandoned den, a sigh of relief escaped Raven and she rolled her head onto the concrete. Blood dripped from her muzzle and painted the gray concrete crimson.

"Raven, are you alright?" Scarlet's eyes softened as she turned her head to face Raven, the black she-cat nodded and the dark ginger she-cat heaved a deep sigh before her herself turned to stalk away, tail dragging along behind her.

_Scarlet has to go through more than any of us ever will, her mate hates her, she was forced to be the lowest-ranking cat, and she knew I killed Ember. Yet, she still stays strong. _Raven completely admired her mother, even if she was frail. Her mother stayed strong even though she has been through so much pain and suffering. Scarlet kept strong and confident, even if the worst things come down on her. Scarlet had told her that you needed to stay strong on the streets, not matter the cause.

"Here you are Raven," she was pulled away from her thoughts and she gently lifted her head, Persephonie was padding over with a large, brown rat in her jaws.

"Thank you, Persephonie," Raven dipped her head in gratitude and the pale she-cat flicked her tail as she dropped the dead creature at the black she-cat's paws.

As Persephonie walked away Raven realized that she was sheltered underneath the low-hanging piece of metal, it lay upon the dumpster and could easily be pushed off. The sun's rays bounced off the metal and didn't reach her, only chilly winds sent shivers through her body.

Raven shrugged and lowered her muzzle to tear off a piece of meat off of the rat; a rat wasn't the most pleasant thing to eat, compared to a mouse at least. Surprisingly, not many mice are seen around here and she's only had one about once or twice in her lifetime. They were _way _better than rats. Their blood was richer and juicier, their flesh was softer and chewier. Rats were the complete opposite. Their blood tasted almost _tainted _while their flesh seemed rough and hard.

Raven chewed on the rat's flesh feeling her hunger slowly ebb away, she was so thankful that her mother brought her food. Scarlet always gave her the biggest and plumpest one, giving scrawny and small rats to the other fighters. Of course she was scowled at because of their size but she didn't mind. Scarlet said Raven needed to be big and strong for her fights. You can't be small and boney and win fights at the same time. Raven was small, yes, but she was well-muscled and powerful.

"Hey, Raven!" A cheerful call rang in Raven's ears and she glanced upwards, a young she-cat was prancing up to her, her sky-blue eyes were wide in bliss and her multi-colored fur becoming ruffled in the wind.

"Hello, Dawn," Raven meowed softly as the trainee ducked underneath the piece of metal and trotted happily up to her. Dawn and her were good friends, sometimes Raven would train her though she usually trained with Willow and Frost.

"You look terrible Raven!" The young she-cat's eyes widened when she noticed the cobwebs that patched up her body, a purr of amusement tickled Raven's throat and Dawn chuckled.

"Aren't you supposed to be bothering your mentors?" Raven tipped her head at the tortoiseshell she-cat and Dawn quickly shook her head, her excitement immediately burning back in her eyes.

"Nightmare said that she would take me out to see the parts of the city I haven't seen yet!" The trainee leaped up in bliss and turned tail to dart away, Raven shook her head and her lips curved up in a smile. Dawn wasn't a murderous cat, for now at least, but she was a cheerful, happy young cat who was eager to learn everything that she can possibly learn. It was quite entertaining to watch her bounce around Frost and annoy him all day.

Raven wished she could have grown up like that. Though, her excitement was pushed down by strict rules and rough training. She once had a friend named Cinder who was like Ember, scared of their training sessions and the dogs that lurked around the corners of the alleys. So, Silver sent her out to go and find Shard, but Shard was luring a dog towards the clueless she-cat. Cinder ended up getting brutally mauled by the dog. That's what encouraged Raven to train hard and act strong. She sometimes wished Ember was more like her, maybe then she didn't have to kill him. She _never_ wanted to kill him, neither did Shard. Until that night, where he attacked him and Raven had to stop him. He set her up. He wanted Ember dead. He didn't want to deal with him anymore. He didn't want her to simply beat him up, he wanted her to kill him.

"She is _our _kit, Shard! How could you treat her like that? And you made her kill Ember you cold-hearted monster!" Raven was dragged out of her thoughts and she noticed Shard and Scarlet glaring at each other, their eyes blazing with rage and their claws scraping along the concrete.

"Ember was weak, he deserved what Raven gave him! And she needs to learn that she can't be weak, or else she _will _end up like Ember!" Shard snarled and Scarlet let out a battle cry, the dark ginger she-cat lunged forward and barreled into Shard. Raven's eyes widened as she watched her mother rake her claws down along the dark tabby's pelt, eyes blazing with pure hatred.

Shard let out a yowl of fury and shoved his paws into Scarlet's belly, he managed to haul the dark ginger she-cat off though she was able to regain her footing quickly. They both lunged at each other, their claws outstretched. Raven watched in horror as her father easily pulled Scarlet downwards. _He could kill her! _The thought spun around in her mind and she pushed herself to her paws, she felt pain surge through her body but she didn't care. She needed to stop Shard before he could kill her.

Raven stumbled to duck underneath the low piece of metal and noticed that the whole band had surrounded the former mates. They looked utterly surprised, probably at the fact that Scarlet actually attacked Shard and that she could actually fight. Blood painted the concrete and yowls arose from the two fighters and cats amongst the large group. Scarlet had her claws dug deeply in Shard's shoulders while Shard had his claws buried deep in Scarlet's chest. It was mostly her blood that was spraying the floor, and it was mostly her cries that filled the air. Shard was just preparing to make the kill.

"You are quite idiotic to fight me, Scarlet! I thought you knew better," Shard let out a menacing snarl and thrust his muzzle into Scarlet's face, she showed no fear though. Her eyes merely narrowed and her lips curved back to reveal her thorn-sharp teeth.

"I do not care what you think anymore, Shard! You are just a rat-hearted cat who deserves to have his heart ripped out and fed to the dogs!" That caused an outraged shriek to escape Shard, the tom latched his claws into the sides of Scarlet's head and began to rapidly slam her head against the concrete.

"Shard, STOP!" Raven cried out and the tom whipped around to face her, the fury and rage that burned in his eyes made her muscles strain. Then, she could see the cold and cruelness that lay behind the boiling rage, he was so eager to get Scarlet out of his system.

"Raven, why aren't you withering in your den?" Shard snapped in annoyance, clearly impatient. He wanted to get back to killing Raven's mother. She wasn't going to let him do that though.

"You are not going to kill her, Shard! You told me you would not," Shard glared at her through narrowed eyes and he let his claws retract out of Scarlet's head, the dark ginger she-cat lay motionless on the ground and Raven quickly stumbled over to her mother, fearing that it was already too late.

Raven fell over beside her mother and began to rapidly lap at Scarlet's matted fur. Clumps of blood knotted her fur and made it difficult to smoothly run her tongue over her fur. Luckily, Scarlet's flank was slowly rising and falling in a steady rhythm. Though, Raven thought she had fallen unconscious after Shard hit her head against the concrete so many times.

"Pathetic weaklings," Raven could hear her father mutter as he turned to limp away, leaving a trail of blood behind him. Scarlet certainly did make a mark in him and she knew he wasn't happy about it.

Raven glanced upwards when she heard a small cough and noticed Flame and Jacko staring in her direction, their pelts were patched up with cobwebs as well and their eyes were wide in horror. _Why are they looking at me like that? _Raven tipped her head in confusion and they both shook their heads, turning they headed away towards the den.

_What's their problem? I didn't do anything to scare them right? I only defended Scarlet. _Then it hit her. _Shard will now want to kill her even more! I know he hates when I defend a weaker cat! It shows how soft I am. _

_He will just end up getting rid of the pest, take the softness out of my life. He doesn't want anything that is soft. He doesn't want a frail cat living with him. _

_Shard's going to end up killing Scarlet, he is going to pick out the worst way to kill her. Especially after what she did today. _

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**So, Scarlet may be in a little bit of trouble 'eh? **

**QOTD: Who's your least favorite character so far? (I promise these questions will get better XD) **

******Remember, I am still accepting submissions for Clan cats over at "Create a Cat" Come quick!**

******Review, and remember, just enjoy the story! :)**

******And sorry if this story isn't as good as the others, I night have got a little lazy on some parts. ^^;**

******Also, thank you all for the reviews guys, its appreciated so much! Along with the cat submissions! :)**


	7. Chapter 6: The Patrol

"…_and you know how much I love to fight dogs and train with you!"_

"_Can't you just shut up for one minute you nuisance?!"_

"_Nope!"_

Raven felt a purr of amusement bubble in her throat as she watched Dawn bounced around at Willow's paws; the tortoiseshell's eyes were wide in bliss while Willow's eyes were blazing in annoyance. It was so entertaining to watch the two. Dawn has not stopped talking since we came out on the patrol and Raven was surprised that Willow has not ripped out the trainee's tongue yet, or Ash at the matter. The tom must have tuned out the young cat before she even began to speak. _Willow probably wishes she could do that._

"Why do you have to be such a grouch all of the time?" Dawn frowned at her mentor and it almost seemed like a scowl, it was almost _too _amusing to Raven the way Dawn stared at the older she-cat. _She is just writing out her death wish. _

"Why don't you learn to keep your mouth shut!" Willow snapped angrily at the she-cat and Dawn shrunk away from her mentor, her head turned away to avert the pale she-cat's burning eyes.

Still, it was funny.

Raven quickened her pace so that she could stand in between the two she-cat's, they certainly did _not _need a fight to break out between the two, considering that Willow would easily be able to kill Dawn. The young tortoiseshell still had much to learn and she wouldn't be prepared for a full on attack by her experienced mentor. It would just end in Dawn lying on the ground with blood oozing out of her mangled body.

Still, it probably would be funny.

Raven had grown a sick sense of humor in these past days. When Blade was finally able to move again it was hilarious to watch the once powerful she-cat limp around, snickers and sneers coming from the cats around her. They were not laughing at Raven luckily. They stopped sharing bitter words with her. It feels good to have some sense of relief. Some of the weight on her shoulders has lifted. The weight that is still holding her down is Shard. Ever since Scarlet attacked him he has been secluded and when he comes out from hiding he sends death glares at Scarlet. Raven knew that he was planning something. A cold plan. And when he told her to come out on the patrol with Ash, she felt fear trickle through her. He wanted the two cats that loved her the most to get out of the way so that he can murder her.

And ever since they left, worry has been tugging at her pelt. She didn't want to leave her mother's side and leave her alone with cats who disregard her. The only cats there who actually cared about Scarlet were Jacko and Flame. Raven had convinced Flame that Scarlet was a fierce and strong she-cat, the tom once thought she was a useless pile of bones that deserved to be fed to the dogs. She wanted to claw his eyes out when he said that but she was able to control her anger and calmly convinced him. It took a while though he finally saw past Scarlet's frail frame and dull eyes.

So, hopefully those two will protect her while Raven is out here.

"Raven, tell me. Do you like any cat?" Raven snapped out of her daze and whipped her head downwards to glare at Dawn, the she-cat had amusement glittering in her blue eyes and she seemed to have a jump in her step. _I always wonder what is wrong with her._

"Why do you need to know?" Raven huffed and lifted her head back upwards, her nose wrinkled at the stench of crow-food as they passed a large dumpster and she felt herself gag. The dumpster in the base never smelled like that and Raven has not gotten used to the horrid smell of the dumpsters the scattered the city yet.

"Because I see the way you look at Flame, your eyes become so dazed and dreamy," Willow and Ash snickered at this causing Raven's pelt to heat up, she didn't like Flame in the way Dawn was thinking. He was just a good friend!

"Do not try to deny it, Raven. Your love will fire up soon!" Dawn chuckled and Raven curled her lips back in a threatening hiss, the trainee merely ran forward to walk beside Ash.

Raven was not in love with Flame! Love gets in the way of life! Taking care of kits, they just annoy you and get in your way! _But the way that those blue eyes sparkle in the sun and how his pelt shines so bright…_No! Raven growled in irritation and shook her head to clear her mind, she did not want to think about it now. Her mind was too full to be shoving another thought in.

"I think I see cats!" Dawn leaped upwards and Raven could hear an annoyed groan escape Willow as she padded up beside her trainee. Raven as well padded up towards the three and a familiar scent touch her tongue.

"I think I know who it is," Raven meowed softly in her brother's ear and he nodded in agreement, there were four shapes coming towards them, all of them were large yet small enough to be cats.

"Scorch!" Ash greeted the dark ginger tom happily and the other tom's eyes brightened as he got closer, Raven stifled a purr seeing the delight pass through the ginger tom's eyes.

"It's good to see you, Ash! Tell me, how has life been at base?" Scorch dipped his head respectfully at Raven, Willow, and Dawn, the three cats behind him copied him and Raven tipped her head in slight confusion.

"It is quite well, despite the fact that Ember was killed," Raven's eyes widened when she saw the pain that passed through her brother's eyes, his whole face was twisted in pain! _I thought Ash hated Ember! _That is when her stomach knotted up again, that same emotion she felt the night she killed Ember. She hated the feeling that it brought to her, it was painful and it made her feel sick.

"I am sorry to hear that, I hope that he rests in peace," was that a devilish gleam in his eye? If it was it passed quickly, there was only sympathy that glimmered in their golden depths.

"But on a more serious note, why have you come?" The pain unknotted out of Ash's face and Scorch's sympathy-filled eyes burned into bliss, just like the same amount in Dawn's right now. The she-cat was fidgeting in excitement and Raven knew that Willow was holding back the urge to snap at the she-cat.

"We were hoping that we could stay at base for a little while," Scorch motioned his tail to the cats behind him and Raven noticed that their ribs were visible through their fur while their eyes were as dull as Scarlet's was. They looked incredibly desperate and Raven almost felt their pain. Something bad must have happened and they were forced out of wherever they were.

"Of course, just follow us," Ash immediately responded and he turned with a flick of his tail, Scorch dipped his head and Raven could just barely hear a sigh of relief escape the dark-colored tom. He too had his ribs poking at the edges of his flank and his golden-colored eyes were not as bright as usual.

Raven was at the head of the group beside her brother and she could feel his fur slightly bristling, Raven didn't dare ask why though, considering he always snapped angrily in response. She always thought that he must be caught up in his thoughts just like she usually is.

"Hey Raven, do you know who those cats are?" Dawn mew sounded from beside her and she glanced down at the tortoiseshell she-cat, her eyes were wide in curiosity and her pelt was bristling as well, but in excitement.

"Well, the dark ginger tom is Scorch," Raven whispered and angled her ears over to the tom, he was staring off like a dazed idiot and Raven held back the purr that tickled her throat.

"The cat beside him is his good friend, Fang," Raven waved her tail over to the long-furred tom who was directly on Scorch's paws, his dull green eyes were wide as they traveled around him.

"The brown she-cat beside him is Wood," the brown she-cat look somewhat weary as she padded alongside a large gray and white tom, she stumbled at times and the tom had to catch her before she fell.

"And that tom is Wolf," the tom looked equally weary as Wood but he managed to stay upwards to help Wood make it along, she suspected that they were good friends and looked out for each other, though that is what allies are for.

"And I am supposed to believe that they are our allies?" Dawn almost choked on her laughter and Raven felt anger bubble inside of her, a furious growl rumbled in her throat and Dawn immediately stopped her rude and idiotic laughter. _She should be grateful that we have cats that look out for us! _

As they rounded the corner that led into their ally that eventually led them into their base Ash came to a sudden halt, Raven, who had her attention on Dawn hadn't noticed her brother's fur had spiked up all the way and his eyes were wide in terror.

"Raven…" Ash whispered in a shaky voice and Raven slowly lifted her gaze upwards, her blood froze inside of her and she felt horror burn in her eyes as she stared at the scene in front of her.

_No…No, no, no, no, no, NO!_

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**I think I got a little lazy at the end I'm sorry. I guess I'm just a bit tired. ^^;**

**Question: What do you think happened?  
**

**Review and enjoy the story! :)**


	8. Chapter 7: Broken Promises

_No…No, no, no, no, no, NO!_

Raven charged towards the large lump of ginger fur, she could see a pool of crimson surrounding the body. It made more terror pulse through her when she recognized who the lump of fur was. It was incredibly difficult with all the blood the soaked in the cat's fur, but Raven knew exactly who it was and it made her heart twist.

"Flame!" Raven stumbled as she fell down beside the tom, his belly was severely cut open and his neck had a nasty cut that slit from one side of his jaw to the other. His face was twisted in agony and his mouth was opened in a silent cry of pain.

"What happened?" Raven rasped feeling a lump form in her throat, making it very difficult to get out her words. Staring down at Flame's crippled body made her sick, blood continued to ooze out of his body and the sticky liquid seeped in between Raven's toes. She already had a strong feeling of who did this to him.

"S-Shard…S-Silver…" Flame managed to sputter out the words and Raven felt rage boil up inside of her, those two attacked one of their greatest fighters and leave him out for them to see? Do they expect not to get their pelts shredded by her?!

"Y-You promised me you wouldn't let them hurt you…" Raven felt the lump grow larger in her throat as she let the trembling words spill out of her mouth, her tail was gently stroking down the tom's

A laugh gurgled in the tom's throat as he gazed up at her with milky green eyes, "promises are made to be broken," his head rolled back against the concrete and Raven felt every muscle in her body stiffen. _Is he dead? _

"A-Ash, get him on your back and take him to Persephonie!" Raven turned around to stare at the tabby with desperation glowing in her eyes and lifted herself to her paws, all of the cats had surrounded behind her and were staring wide-eyed at the gruesome scene in front of them. Though, none of them argued as Scorch helped haul Flame onto Ash's shoulders.

Raven watched as the whole group ran past her and left her and the pool of blood. While the rage still coursed through her confusion mingled in. _Why would Shard and Silver attack him? He was not weak and defenseless. _Raven tilted her head as her paw ran through the crimson pool, causing her black paw to become scarlet. _Unless he was standing up for Scarlet._

Raven cringed at the thought of her mother already dead, lying mangled and her pelt completely scarlet. _I need to see if she is still alive! There is only a slight possibility that she is still alive though…_

Raven shook her head to clear her mind of the troubling thoughts and ran forward, her paws leaving bloody paw-prints to trail behind her. Her anger and hatred for her father was growing stronger with each new paw-step. _First he makes me kill my brother, then he threatens to kill my mother, then he attacks Flame! _Raven always wanted to feel his fur under her claws and see his wide, shaking eyes as she ripped out his throat. Blood spewing out onto the concrete and onto her paws. Oh how good that would feel. _One day…_

Raven came to a halt when she found herself beside the dumpster, cats were huddling around the center of the base and Raven guessed that they wanted to see how crippled Flame look and laugh at him. Call him weak. Sneer in his face. Raven could pick out the tortoiseshell pelt of Blade and could see the bitterness that burned in her eyes as they followed Flame. She was no longer the victim of criticism and hatred, Flame was.

Raven managed to pick out the dark tabby pelt of Shard and she curled her lips back in an a rage-filled snarl when he turned her way, his blue eyes were devilishly gleaming and she could also see amusement burning in their depths. _He thinks this is funny! He thinks this is all just a game! _

"Did you like my surprise, Raven?" All cats' attention turned to her as Shard wove his way around them, Raven felt her claws unsheathe and her ears flatten against her head as she felt a provoked growl rise up in her throat.

"Well, it is obvious you did not, why?" He stopped and pushed his muzzle into Raven's face, his lips were curved back in a menacing smirk and his eyes blazed brighter when he saw the fury in her eyes.

"You do not know how much hatred I am feeling for you, father! You attacked my best friend and made me kill Ember! I feel like ripping out your eyes and shoving them down your throat!" Raven snarled and lunged at him; she toppled him over and felt her claws rake across his pelt. She heard him gasp in surprise but it quickly converted into a snarl as he attempted to haul her off. She pushed her paws into his throat and glared down at him with burning eyes.

"At least I know that you can still fight," a humorous growl rumbled in the tom's throat and it only caused Raven to push down harder on her father's throat, his eyes showed no fear nor did he even try to gasp for air. He just stared up at her with amused-filled eyes.

"Where is Scarlet at?" Raven had not noticed the dark ginger she-cat amongst the group of cats and it made her pelt prickle with worry, Scarlet was probably lying dead somewhere where only Shard and Silver know of.

"I do not know, I mean after that dog came and ripped her apart…" Shard's words drifted off and Raven felt pure terror run through her, her eyes widened and it caused a bitter-full sneer to escape from Shard. Raven felt her rage burn up again and she began to bury her claws deep into her father's neck.

"You killed her you rat-heart! You lured her to the waiting dog! I HATE YOU!" Raven screeched feeling her already soaked paws to become painted over again, her father's paws batted at her belly but she didn't budge. Her anger and pain was taking over her, she could not control herself.

Suddenly, Raven felt something barrel into her side and caused her to stumble off her father, her claws were ripped from Shard's throat and she felt claws dig into her pelt. It was Silver. The tom seemed furious as his claws ran down her sides and his teeth connect to her flailing paws.

Raven, with her lingering anger still bubbling at the bottom of her stomach, let out a battle cry and ripped her paws out of the tom's grip before shoving her claws into Silver's throat. He gaged and she felt his claws bury themselves into her neck. Pain wove it's way around and through her body, she gritted her teeth trying to ignore the pain.

"Let go of her, Silver," Raven could see Ash padding up to them, his eyes too were blazing with fury and rage. He must be furious that Shard and Silver killed their mother, considering the ferocity that blazed in his eyes.

Sliver let out an annoyed huff and Raven felt his claws exit her, her claws slid out of his throat as he climbed off of her and she lay panting on the concrete. She could feel her blood trickle out of her wounds but she did not mind. She could feel her father's eyes burn into her and she felt the urge to get up and rip them out. He didn't say anything though. It was an eerie silence. No cat dared to speak. It was so quiet that you could hear a bee flying a few fox-lengths away from base. _What is going to happen now?_

Finally, Raven heard her father's paws thump against the ground as he came towards her. Instinctively, she rolled over and leaped to her paws, her father was merely glaring at her though. He made no move to attack. His eyes were cold and no longer were burning with amusement. He was extremely angered.

"You are lucky your brother helped you," Shard curled his lips back to reveal thorn-sharp teeth before turning and stalking towards the dumpster, Silver let out a bitter hiss at Ash before running to catch up with Shard.

"Raven, you are an idiot sometimes," Raven turned her attention to the silver tabby who stared back at her with a disgusted look twisted onto his face, her heart twisted as Ash whipped around and shouldered his way through the crowd of cats.

"He is right, Raven. Your father is now just going to plan to kill you," Raven jerked her head around at the new voice and noticed Wood standing behind her, the she-cat did not look as weary as she was on the journey back from the patrol. The brown tabby was staring at her with narrowed blue eyes and Raven felt a growl rumble in her throat.

"What do you know? You are not Shard! You do not know what he is planning!" Raven snapped fiercely at the she-cat before turning and barreling through the group of cats. _I know Shard is angry at me, but would he really plan to kill me? _Raven thrashed her head around to get the thought to exit her mind; she was not worried about her life right now. Flame's life was on the line and she needed to make sure he was going to be okay.

Raven nosed her way through the low-lying tendrils that led into the medicine corner. The scent of herbs was strong and it made Raven's nose wrinkle in disgust. She could not see how Persephonie could deal with the smell. Raven shrugged it off and noticed Flame lying in a moss nest, his paws were irritably twitching while his flank rose ever so slowly. Raven flinched at the sight of the cobwebs that scattered across the ginger tom's body.

"Raven?" Raven looked upwards at the soft voice and saw the pale silver she-cat slide out from the shadows, her eyes were weary and her eyes looked very dull. _She was probably working her tail off trying to save Flame. _

"Persephonie," Raven dipped her head respectfully at the older she-cat before lowering herself to the ground and wrapping her tail over her paws, "I have a question, will Flame be okay?"

Persephonie heaved a sigh and padded over to the black she-cat, Raven could see the guilt that seeped deep in the golden depths of the she-cat's eyes. She felt her fur bristle with anxiety as she waited for the she-cat to respond. It made her paws tingle with worry. _What if she could not save Flame? What if he will not make it to see tomorrow?_

"He is in very critical condition, Raven. He lost so much blood that I thought he did not have any left!" Persephonie spoke with trembling words and Raven felt her heart twist in pain, she could see the sorrow that glowed in the she-cat's eyes along with the guilt and pain that followed.

"I do not believe he will make it to tomorrow," Raven held back a cry of agony as her eyes traveled over to the ginger tom; he looked so small and crippled lying in his nest. She felt the lump form in her throat again and she wanted to rip it out, she did not want to feel any more pain. She did not want to feel at fault for these deaths.

"I know how much you cared about him, Raven," Raven felt Persephonie's tail run soothingly down her spine and she felt her eyes fill, without thought she turned her head and buried her nose into the pale she-cat's shoulder. She felt herself shudder as she felt cries and yowls tickle at her throat. She did not want to feel pain! She did not want to feel agony! She wanted to feel comfort. She wanted to feel _happy._

"I will let you rest with him if you would like," Persephonie's warm breath bounced off of Raven's ear and she pulled away from the she-cat, her golden eyes were piercing with sadness as she lifted herself to her paws. She motioned her tail to Flame before disappearing in the shadows without another word.

Raven felt her paws tremble as she rounded Flame's nest, her body felt numb as she fell down beside him. All of her muscles seemed to have been ripped out of her body while her heart seemed to have shut down. The lump in her throat seemed to have made it hard to breathe.

"Flame, I am truly sorry this happened to you…" Raven whispered gently into the tom's ear as she ran her tail softly down his body, her muzzle brushed against his shoulder blade as a way to comfort herself. She wanted to feel his fur brush against hers one last time. She wanted to feel the last of his warmth radiate from him and into her.

"R-Raven?" Raven lifted her head up in surprise and noticed dull blue eyes staring up at her, she felt a purr bubble in her throat and she pushed her nose into his cheek, causing a rough and raspy purr to rumble in the tom's throat.

"F-Flame, I-I am so sorry," Raven whispered through the lump that seemed to be extending in her throat and she could hear a faint laugh escape from the tom, she knew he was forcing it through the pain.

"D-Do not be, I-I will not h-hold a g-grudge against you," she felt his tail stroke gently against her cheek and she felt his tongue run over her ears, she felt his love and warmth radiating off of him. _I wish I could have told you sooner…_

"You will n-not forget me r-right?"

Raven looked up into his eyes and saw the gentleness that always glowed in them when he stared at her; he had signs of a faint smile on his face and the signs that amusement that was buried in the depths of his blue eyes. It somewhat surprised her on how he changed so much over time. When Raven was a kit he was about Dawn's age. He teased her and called her _"little bird"_. She hated that name so much and she would always snap at him telling him that he should pick on someone his own size. But as she got older she got more powerful and he could not look down on her anymore. They became best friends. And now they were here, him on his last legs and she lying curled up beside him. _I am losing everyone I have ever truly cared about…_

"I will always remember you, you most likely will not leave my mind for a few days," purrs of amusement arose in both of their throats and Raven felt her heart ache. _This is the last laugh I will ever share with you, Flame…_

"You _promise_?" Raven slightly cringed at the word _promise _but she knew it was not going to be an easy one to break. His memory will probably linger in her mind until the day fate chooses to beat down on her.

"I promise," Raven rubbed her cheek against his and felt his head fall pull away from her, it fell down at the edge of the nest and Raven froze. _Did his eyes just close? Did his flank just stop rising?!_

"R-Raven, just k-know, _I have always loved you," _Raven heard a weak and faint mew come from Flame before his flank heaved one last time before shuddering and simply falling back down. Agony found its way through her as she realized what happened. _He is dead…He is dead!_

"F-Flame," Raven's voice quivered as she rested her head against the ginger tom's neck, it was matted with blood but she didn't care. His body was still warm and she wanted to collect it.

_I have always loved you too, Flame. _Raven felt everything shut down inside of her as her eyes closed and pictured herself and Flame, they both were far away from the evil grips of her father and Silver. They were happy and laughing, while kits tumbled at their paws. _I am so sorry Flame I could not give you that life! _Raven cried in her mind and buried her nose deeper in his fur. _I am so sorry…_

Raven longed for Scarlet to be here so that she could comfort her, Raven wanted to feel the gentle whispers in her ears and her mother's tongue run softly down her pelt. _But now I have no one to comfort me. I am alone. And it is all because of Shard. _Rage burned over her pain and she felt her claws scrape into the edge of the moss nest. _He caused all of my pain! He has killed every cat that I have cared about! _

_Why does he have to do this to me? I wish he was a father who cared about his kits. He only cares about killing every cat though! He caused me so much pain and agony!_

Raven felt her eyelids tighten over her eyes as she felt her fury grow; her father was only a murderer who only cared about himself! He does not care about her; he does not care about her happiness! _I caused all of it though. I provoked him to go through with killing them…_

_Scarlet, Flame, please forgive me. I gave you all promises and I broke them. I promised you all that I would not let anything hurt you. Now you are both dead. _

_I am truly sorry. Please, forgive me… _

* * *

**So, Raven truly did have feelings for Flame.  
**

**And sorry if the ending sounds all jumbled up. XD And she didn't even include Ember in her apology. Bad Raven! **

**QOTD: If you were in Raven's position what would you do?  
**

**Review and enjoy! :)**

**P.S: It's funny how all of you guessed that in the beginning what Raven was looking at was Scarlet! XD **


	9. Chapter 8: Dead Silence

"_Raven? Raven, wake up!" _

Raven let out a groan and blinked open her eyes, Persephonie's paw had been jabbing at her side and caused an aching sensation to form at her side. Raven wanted to growl at the she-cat for disturbing her while she was sleeping but saw the urgency in the pale she-cat's eyes and instantly sat up, she blinked the weariness out of her eyes and felt Persephonie's gaze harden on her.

"Jacko has gone missing, I fear Shard has done something to him," Raven could see the worry that blazed deep in her golden and Raven could already feel her fur bristle in fury. She did not need another friend to be murdered at her father's paws.

"If he dare lay a claw on him I promise I will protect him," Raven glanced down at Flame's body before quickly turning away; she could not bear to look at his mangled body, especially after last night. It would pain her too much and tie up knots in her belly.

Raven murmured a farewell to Persephonie before nosing her way past the tendrils; they draped lazily over her shoulders and felt almost like a comforting tail wrapping itself around her shoulders. She needed to be comforted now. Of course she had Jacko, but he could be dead for all she knew! She felt anger race through her veins as the thought reentered her mind. _Shard has already made me mad enough, if he killed Jacko I might have to rip his damned throat out!_

Raven felt a growl sputter in her throat as she excited the den, she felt the warm sunshine immediately warm her pelt and seep down to her skin. She could not bask in it though. She needed to find Jacko and fast. For all she knew, he could have his throat ripped out and being ripped apart by dogs. Though, she knew it was not right to think that way the thoughts were woven into her mind and would not escape.

Raven felt her nose twitch when she noticed a specific presence around, Silver was nowhere to be seen along with Jacko. Surprisingly, she found Shard tussling with Frost and most of the band was surrounding them. Some cheering on Shard while others cheered on Frost. Yet, bitter words were also thrown out. When Frost had Shard pinned Willow had yowled that Shard was weak. That seemed to have set off the tom because he hauled off the white tom and barreled into him, his claws scraping along the tom's side.

_I will deal with you later. _Raven inwardly hissed as she turned away and began to charge towards the alleyway, her paws thundered against the concrete while her tail whipped wildly behind her. Her ears flattened against the wind that battered against them and her eyes scanned frantically around her in a desperate search for the ginger and black tom. She did not just make a promise to Persephonie, she made a silent promise to Hydra, the she-cat who seemed to have a dreamy eye for Jacko and Jacko seemed the same for the black she-cat. Hydra seemed self-persevered and rarely spoke, yet she was extremely fierce and hostile. That must have caught Jacko's eye.

"Jacko! Jacko!" Raven called out as loud as her voice would allow her and let it echo across the walls of the alley, she prayed for a response and hoped her voice carried far enough for him to hear.

Silence. Eerie silence. Raven felt worry tug at her pelt as she repeated her call, but only the wind carried its own sound along with it as it swirled at her ears. _Swoosh, swoosh. _It was her response. It was an empty and cold response. _Please answer me Jacko! _

Raven skidded to a halt when she came beside the thunderpath, strangely no monsters rolled by and no twolegs were in sight. It seemed dead. No sound. No life. Raven suppressed a shiver and felt fear crawl its way up her spine. It was _too _quiet. It was too dead. _What is going on? _Raven felt confusion mingle in with her fear as she let her eyes travel around her, her mouth slightly gaped open and let the wind catch on her tongue. No scents. No _familiar _scents.

"Jacko!" Raven suddenly called out, her voice bounced off the walls of the buildings and was drifted away with the wind, and her paws tingled with anxiety as once again no other voice rang in her ears.

Suddenly, a faint noise. A faint call bounced off of her ears and into the wind. _"Raven?!" _Her head swiveled around trying to figure out which way the call came from and noticed a figure, a small black figure running up to her. She wanted to believe it was Silver running up to her, his silver and black paws painted scarlet with Jacko's blood. It was a horrendous thought, she knew, but it kept replaying itself in her head.

"Raven!" The call was more audible as the figure got closer and Raven breathed a heavy sigh of relief as she recognized who it was, his ginger and black pelt was merely ruffled while his dark blue eyes glowed in the sun's rays. His throat was not pouring out blood nor was he disfigured in any way.

"I am so glad to see your face now," Raven laughed half-heartedly as she strode up to the tom, an amused purr rumbled deep within his throat as he lowered his head to rest his nose on top of her head.

"Why, did you think I was going to be eaten by a dog?" He meowed jokingly and Raven playfully shoved him, he chuckled and shoved her back. She stumbled and nearly fell over, considering how much bigger he was to her. But it made both of them burst into joyous laughter. _It is so comforting to know that I can still be happy. _

"I kind of did, Persephonie said that you were missing and Silver was not at base. I thought either you were killed by him or being ripped apart by a dog," Raven shrugged casually not wanting to show the worry and fear she had felt earlier about him, though instead of a mused purr the tom's obnoxious died down and he narrowed his eyes.

"You know Raven, you should not worry all of them time. I would be able to handle Silver if he ever came after me," he began to pad away and Raven felt her claws scrape along the concrete as she watched him walk away. _He probably is right, he can fend for himself. Yet, if a whole bunch of dogs cane after him he would not be able to fend for himself._

Raven shook her head to try and clear her knotted mind before running forward to catch up to Jacko, now instead of his face twisted in amusement and joy his face was narrowed down into an angry twist. Raven guessed he was thinking about Shard, Jacko had been very distraught about Flame's passing. He had come in later that night and nearly curled up around Flame. Raven knew how close those two have been, and it made her heart ache in pain as she watched him bury his nose into Flame's matted fur. _My father has caused more than one cat pain. He tore friendships apart, he tore love apart. He tore everything apart. I wish I could stop him, but what could I do? Silver would just come back after me…_

"You know you cannot kill him," Raven glanced upwards at Jacko in surprise as they rounded the corner into the alley, he was staring at her with dead seriousness written all over his face. _Did he just read my mind?_

"Why not? I mean me and you can band together to kill him and Silver," Raven meowed and Jacko's seriousness instantaneously converted into fury. She lowered her head in attempt to avert his gaze but it merely hardened on her.

"Do you really think it is that easy? Shard has cats that will fight for him! Blade, Slash, Scorch, Fang! Should I go on?" Jacko hissed in pure anger and Raven felt a sigh push its way through her lips, he was completely right. Who was going to stand on their side? Most of the band members were Shard's followers. She and Jacko would not be able to go up against all of them. It would be an impossible victory.

Raven stayed silent as they entered base, Shard and Frost were no longer engaged in their fight and all the cats seemed to have broken up. She noticed Slash and Blade beside her father, they were whispering quietly too each other and when Raven craned her neck in attempt to hear it was to no use. Their words were exciting their mouths too quietly for her sharp ears. _It is obvious that they are planning something. I wish I had knowledge of it though._

"Do not go killing cats while I am gone alright?" Raven felt a tail flick over her ear and she noticed Jacko staring at her with soft blue eyes, his anger seemed to have vanished and a purr bubbled in his throat as he strode away. Raven knew exactly where. The black she-cat was lying under the shade of the one tree that grew near the wall that separated their base to the forest that lay beyond.

"Hey, Raven!" Raven turned her attention downwards when she felt a small nudge on her flank and noticed soft blue eyes staring up at her, her pupils were so enlarged with excitement that Raven could barely see the blue eyes that lay underneath.

"Let me guess, Willow wants you to engage in a fight with a dog?" Raven cuffed the tortoiseshell over the ear playfully and the trainee crouched lowly to the ground, a playful growl rumbling in her throat as she stared up at her.

"Well, yes and no. She wants me to fight Shard," that made Raven's blood stop. The trainee let out a squeak of excitement and leaped upwards in bliss as she scampered away. Raven watched her go with wide, horror filled eyes.

_She cannot be possibly excited to fight him! He will end up killing her! _Raven felt her eyes blaze as she turned her gaze to her father. He was peacefully lapping at his paw and was oblivious of her burning gaze. She felt as if he was the one who planned the fight. She would not expect that Willow would plan such a thing; she is not that cruel the last time she checked. _He only wants strong cats in the base. Dawn generally does not shed blood, maybe he planned the fight to teach her the lesson of living out here. _Raven felt her muscles stiffen as the memory of Ember's flashed in her mind, her father told her to teach him a lesson but it ended with her brother dead at her paws. _Oh please do not let that be Dawn! She is too young to have a fate like that! She is too young to have a fate!_

"Um, Raven?" Raven was dragged out of her thoughts when her thinking was interrupted by a soft voice, she turned around and noticed Persephonie staring at her with worry pricking in her eyes.

"What is it now? Is someone missing again?" Raven sneered in mock amusement and felt the pale she-cat's claws dig into her tail. Raven felt pain rush up her tail and she snapped at the she-cat with rage building in her eyes.

"What was that for?!" Raven hissed and Persephonie merely let out a sigh as she settled herself down beside the black she-cat, the pale she-cat's paw was folded and seemed to be cradling something. Raven tipped her head in curiosity and felt Persephonie's nose tap lightly against her ear.

"I wanted to tell you this last night but I thought I might as well wait until today," the she-cat's voice was so low that it made it extremely hard to hear her, even when her mouth was right by her ear.

"I found this in between Flame's claws," Persephonie's paw unfolded and Raven's eyes widened when she saw a ball of fur in her paw, it was silver tabby and had specks of blood mingled in with it.

"It was not Shard who killed Flame, it was Silver," Raven felt rage begin to burn inside of her belly as she imagined Silver forcing down Flame, his long claws scoring down the tom's belly and raking along his throat. Blood spewing everywhere. While Flame struggled helplessly under Silver his claws caught into his fur and managed to rip out a chunk of silver tabby fur from him.

"But Shard was right about Scarlet, a dog came and…" Raven raised her paw up for silence before the she-cat could finish and felt her anger brewing inside of her. _Silver killed Flame? Why? What cause did he have to do it? What did he do to deserve it?! Along with Scarlet!_

"Flame was trying to protect your mother, Raven," Persephonie lifted herself to her paws and left the ball of fur to lie beside Raven before padding back towards her den. Raven felt her heart ache and she felt herself fall to the concrete. She felt somewhat angry that Flame went on to protect Scarlet, but she also felt somewhat happy that he did. He tried to protect what seemed left of her loved ones. He wanted her to be _happy_. But he failed; he was slain by Silver before he could help her.

_Flame and Scarlet will be avenged, but it will be extremely difficult to do. What was she going to do? _Raven glanced downwards at the ball of fur beside her and forced a sigh through her lips. _I wish I could just kill them. I wish it was easy for me to kill them as easy as it was for them to kill cats. _

_One day peace will come, one day Shard and Silver's icy grips on us will release. Maybe one day we will be able to live in somewhat peace. One day Shard and Silver will become silent, one day they will no longer have rein on us._

_One day…_

* * *

**So, we found out that Jacko can read minds! :O  
**

**Just kidding! XD But we did find out that Shard did not kill Flame, yet Scarlet was still attacked by a dog. Oh what a wonderful world Raven lives in!**

**But still, she seeks revenge yet how will she get it? **

**QOTD: I am asking this again because we were introduced to more characters, who is your favorite cat? (They can be dead XD)**

**Read and review! :) It is greatly appreciated! :)**

**Dawn's going to be getting in trouble if she fights Shard! D:**


	10. Update

**Okay guys, I think I am just going to stop the story for now and write the story on my own time. I mean, I will finish the story and post the chapters when I am done. I am going through a lot of stress and just need to take a break and do not want you guys to wait forever while I struggle to finish one chapter. **

**This should not be a convenience I hope and I hope you all understand. I will hopefully finish the story by a few months but I might post a few chapters in that timeline. **

**Until next time, keep reading and reviewing, I love you all and I am so grateful for all of your support.  
**

**Love, BurningSins **


	11. Chapter 9: Pride and Horror

**So, I am posting this for you guys because I know you're all eager to see the next chapter. :)**

**Also, I got about a few chapters down, but I probably won't post them yet.**

**Well, here you guys go! :)**

* * *

"_Come on Dawn you can beat him!"_

Raven felt her screech drown out in the other yowls that filled the air; fear was prickling at her pelt as she watched the small tortoiseshell she-cat bat at Shard's head. Her blue eyes were wild with nervousness and fury, while Shard's icy eyes were burning with excitement and blood-lust. Seeing those eyes made Raven's worry factor sky rocket. He _wanted _to feel Dawn's blood seep between his claws. He _wanted _to hear her cry in agony. He _wanted _to kill her.

"Do not let him beat you, Dawn!" The furious yowl erupted from Frost, who was planted firmly next to Willow. His dark-colored eyes blazing with rage and anger, while Willow sat silently, watching the fight with blank blue eyes focused on her trainee. It looked as if she did not care if Dawn was slain in battle.

The tortoiseshell she-cat had exhaustion written all over her face, Shard was testing her limits and he seemed to have noticed the fury in the trainee's eyes to die down. This meant he was going to close in while she was in her weaker state. His claws were now reaching upwards and cuffing her over the ears, Raven watched with terrified eyes as the she-cat stumbled backwards with blood trickling down her face. Her blue eyes were dazed, obviously dizzy from the continuous batting to the head from Shard's large paws. He swiftly leaped at her and barreled over her, pushing the she-cat to the concrete.

"Dawn, redeem yourself!" Raven cried out to the she-cat with a trembling voice and she noticed the tortoiseshell's eyes turned to her for an instant before Shard's claws connected to her face.

Raven's heart twisted in pain as the she-cat struggled helplessly underneath Shard's weight, Shard had his paws pressed against Dawn's throat and seemed to be putting all pressure on his paws. Dawn's eyes were widening in horror and let out a cry of protest as she continued to wriggle underneath of the dark tabby. At least she continued to fight for her life, and she seemed to have some type of hope of getting out of this fight without getting severely wounded. Raven hoped Dawn would embrace that hope and plead it to grow.

"Seems that you have given up," Shard bitterly hissed and shoved his muzzle into the trainee's face, his lips curled backwards in a devilish smirk and his eyes glimmering with amusement.

"I am never giving up! I am not going to let you kill me!" Dawn screeched in fury and new energy seemed to have surged into the she-cat's veins, her claws penetrated deeply into Shard's shoulders and used all of her strength to haul the tom off. Raven noticed the surprise that came across Shard's face as he stumbled backwards.

"Go Dawn!" Cheers exploded from the crowded cats and Raven joined in with the chorus of yowls and cries, Shard obviously wasn't pleased that everyone was cheering on the trainee instead of him, but he seemed to ignore the obnoxious screeches that rounded him, while Dawn seemed to be absorbing each and every encouraging word.

The tortoiseshell she-cat sprinted forward and lunged forward, her paws were outstretched and her eyes were now glowing with excitement. Her new sense of energy was overwhelming her it seemed, which made it possible for her to defeat Shard in the battle. It made Raven's worry factor lower down to lower ranks, yet there was a small drip of worry that still hung in her body. _Shard will not give up easily._

Dawn tumbled into Shard and her claws immediately found themselves in his skin, a provoked snarl bubbled in the tom's throat as he tried to rip the trainee from his pelt. Yet, the she-cat clung on and continued to penetrate his skin with tooth and claw. No longer did fear or nervousness radiate from the tortoiseshell; no longer did her eyes shake with fear and terror. Determination and bravery glowed in her blue eyes. She certainly was not going to give up easily as well.

Suddenly, Shard collapsed to the concrete, Dawn falling alongside him. Her claws were still buried deeply in his pelt and her teeth were still attached to his scruff. She had actually managed to push him down! Raven's eyes widened in surprise as Dawn ripped away from Shard, tearing a chunk of fur from his pelt and a small piece of skin jumbled in with the fur. Shard didn't even move though, he lay motionless and his eyes were tightly shut. _What is wrong with him?_

Dawn cautiously stepped away from the band leader; her claws were still unsheathed her lips were curled backwards, revealing her thorn-sharp teeth. But Shard never arose to his paws, his body was still and his flank didn't rise or fall. Dawn didn't seem to notice though; she didn't need to care what happened to her. Cats were already gathering around her, throwing compliments at her face and cheering her on. Raven noticed the she-cat's blue eyes enlarged in happiness and excitement, once again taking in all of the encouraging words into her system.

"Great battle, Dawn," Dawn's eyes turned upon her two mentors who were strolling up to the crowd, both of their eyes glimmering with pride as the stared down at their trainee and the tortoiseshell's eyes glowed even bright in joy.

Raven strode forward towards the she-cat, feeling relief wash over her a billion times. It was nice to know that Dawn would not be leaving her without a slit throat or a gashed belly, but only the pride that overwhelmed her and the endless cheers from her base-mates. She would not have to hear taunts whisper endlessly in her ears or feel Shard's dark wraith for being _too weak. _

"I am proud of you, Dawn," Raven meowed as she finally was at the trainee's side, a purr erupted from the tortoiseshell and Raven felt her nose bury deeply into her shoulder fur.

"Thank you, Raven," Raven could barely hear the soft whisper that escaped from Dawn and Raven wrapped her tail around the tortoiseshell's shoulders to bring her closer. For some reason, it felt as if she needed to protect her, some type of urge forcing her to make sure that Dawn was alright.

Kind of what Scarlet would always act towards her.

* * *

The moon casted a silvery light down on the base and the stars sparkled and danced around the large circle. No clouds drifted among the sky and no winds ruffled Raven's pelt. She could say that finally once, it was a peaceful night. After many nights of dread and pain, it was nice to have a night where no cat was getting brutally murdered or bleeding to death. No yowls of agony echoed off of the stone walls, only the songs of crickets as they sung the night a sweet lullaby.

If only it could have stayed like that.

An ear-splitting screech broke the peace and Raven felt every bone in her body strain. Who was the victim tonight? Whose skin is being pierced with sharp claws? Whose blood is oozing out of their body? Raven suddenly felt an uncomfortable feeling bubble up inside of her. The cries continued to split through the air and it sounded like the most agonizing sound that has ever reached her ears. Something awful was obviously happening, and it was bothering Raven to the breaking point.

She pushed herself to her paws and took a swift glance around her, she shouldn't leave her post but she would take the risks. She just was curious to see what the agonized screeches were coming from and who they were coming from. It sent shivers up through her spine as she imagined what might be happening. Something getting ripped apart by a fearsome creature, a cat getting its throat ripped out.

Raven shook her head to clear it of the nasty thoughts and sprinted forward, towards the cries. Her paws were shaking with each new paw-step and her body felt somewhat numb. She didn't want to see the gruesome scene that may lie in front of her, yet she felt like she needed to see what it was. It was an urge that continued to tug at her, pulling her towards the painful screeches. It was odd, but she went along with it.

Raven rounded the corner that led out of the alley and immediately halted at what lay in front of her. Her eyes widened in horror and her body began to tremble in terror. Blood was everywhere. Blood was soaking her paws. And a body laid a few fox-lengths in front of her. It was a mangled, blood-soaked silver tabby tom.

Raven stiffened when a sudden voice sounded behind her. It was laced with menace and mock humor.

"Why hello Raven."


	12. SPECIAL: Shard and Scarlet's Story

**If you listen to Love "The Way You Lie-Part 2" with this, it matches pretty well. **

* * *

8 Months of Age

"_You are such an idiot, Silver!"_

"_How dare you call me such a thing! At least I have the wits to continue to fight!"_

"_I am surprised your throat is not ripped apart by now!"_

_Scarlet watched silently as the toms bickered with each other, a purr of amusement rumbling in her throat. It was certainly entertaining to watch them argue over the smallest of things, she felt as if she could watch them all day and be content. It's certainly better than being forced to fight dogs and the other trainees for worthless reasons. Yet, she went along with it because she feared of what her mentor, Reaper, would do to her. He pushed her to her limits while training and she was always forced to get up at the first signs of dawn. It made her irritated but she followed his orders obediently._

"_You are annoying you know that, Silver?" Shard growled in annoyance and the silver tabby's lips merely curved upwards in a devilish smirk, causing Shard's icy eyes to burn with hatred. And as quick as a lighting strike, the dark tabby was barreling over the other tom._

"_Oh come on Shard, you are way too sensitive!" Silver's laugh overpowered Shard's provoked snarls and Scarlet watched with widened eyes as the gray tabby scored his claws down the silver tabby's sides, not showing any kinds of mercy. _

"_Shard, stop!" Scarlet suddenly called out, afraid that Shard would hurt her brother and the gray tabby's eyes flashed her way, so much anger and fury was glowing in his blue eyes and Scarlet lifted her chin upwards, trying not to show any cowardice or fear. She couldn't in front of him at least._

_Shard let out a snort of disgust and released his grip on Silver's pelt, the silver tabby snickered and pushed himself to his paws, blood trickling down through his pelt. Scarlet quickly made her way over to her littermate, hoping he wasn't too badly injured. Though, as she got closer the amusement and cheerfulness in Silver's blue eyes dwindled away into rage, in which Scarlet felt confusion wash over her. _

"_I did not need your help! I was perfectly capable of defeating him!" The tom suddenly lashed out and Scarlet felt her paws take her backwards. She didn't understand why her brother was acting so rage-full towards her, she only wanted to help him!_

_Scarlet felt her claws scrape along the concrete ground and felt her brother's gaze burn into her lowered head. "I do not need help from you. I never will." Scarlet heard the malice that laced in the word's her brother spat and she shifted her gaze upwards to watch him stalk away, leaving her to be alone, leaving her to lay in bewilderment and anger._

_What is wrong with him?! He was perfectly fine with me today up to this moment! Scarlet yowled in her head and she felt her lips curl backwards to reveal her thorn-sharp teeth to nothing in particular. It was not pleasing to let Silver yell at her like she was nothing, like she was not important in his life. It made her furious to think about it, yet why had his mood changed so fast? What clicked in him?_

"_Scarlet, you look childish like that, stop it," Scarlet's head shot upwards at the amused-filled voice and noticed Shard staring down at her with those blue eyes of his, they weren't burning with as much bitterness as they were before, it was simply glittering with amusement and slightly still sparking with a tinge of animosity. _

_Scarlet just realized that her lips were still curled backwards and she immediately felt her pelt heat up in embarrassment as she coiled them back against her teeth. She probably looked ridiculous like that and she wanted to mentally smack herself in the head for doing it. Yet, she thought it was reasonable for her to have done it._

"_What, you do not like my smile?" Scarlet joked and she heard a purr bubble up in the large tom's throat, causing one of her own to slip from her vocal cords. All of the boiled up anger seemed to have been dissolving now and was being extinguished by something like happiness and warmth._

"_I actually do, though you looked stupid when you were staring at the ground with a snarl held in your throat," Shard meowed coolly and Scarlet felt a snicker rise in her throat, the gray tabby joined in with her and she cracked a smile up at him. In response, he curved his lips backwards in his own smile, which merely looked like a smirk but Scarlet didn't care. As long as no hostility glazed his eyes then there was no reason to feel anything but joy towards him._

2 Years Later

_The drooping sun was allowing the awaiting shadows lengthen and the hiding stars peek from their hiding places. A light breeze flowed peacefully through the air, making any human debris the lay on the road or anywhere to be exact, to dance along with it. Nothing made a sound, not even a peep. The crickets didn't even come out to sing the night a lullaby. The only thing that stirred was the whispering of the night in which whisked calmly through the air. _

_Scarlet was below the wonders of the night sky, gazing up at the twinkling stars with widened, awe-struck eyes. Of course, she has seen many night skies in her lifetime, yet this one seemed different. The stars seemed to be shining brighter. The breeze seemed sweeter. And everything just seemed all so peaceful. It made a warm sensation pass through her veins and a smile break on her face. After a long and heartwarming greenleaf early leaf-fall didn't seem much different oddly. Scarlet didn't complain though, it was quite enjoyable and she didn't want to waste any minute of it wishing for the warm days of greenleaf back. _

_Scarlet inhaled the air with a deep breath and let in all of the scents of the night flow through her nostrils and into her mouth. Something sweet it seems. Though, she couldn't pick out exactly what it was. She was deeply curious and wanted her paws to carry her towards the scent, but not one inch of her body moved. Not one muscle strained. Not one bone clicked. Even her eyes didn't blink or twitch. Her focus was now just pointed towards the horizon, where the scent had drifted from. The dim light made it difficult to see what lay in front of her, but she could pick out outlines of structures in the moon's light and she held back the urge to tip her head sideways. What are they? Are they buildings? _

_Suddenly, all silence was broken. A shrill cry cracked the empty air and echoed through the night. Scarlet swiftly leaped to her paws and felt her eyes travel anxiously around her. She felt her heartbeat quicken as another cry split the air. Where was it coming from!? Scarlet's mind was whirling and more cats began to pour out of the abandoned den, their eyes were weary yet were wide in terror. _

"_HELP ME!" A yowl of agony filled her ears and Scarlet felt her eyes enlarge when she noticed a figure running down the alleyway, in which led into Base. She noticed sparks dancing from the cat's pelt and it's eyes were so wide, she thought that they would just pop out of its head any second._

_Scarlet felt her paws push her towards the cat, its tortured cries continuing to crack the night air. Many cats followed in suit behind her, eager to see who the cat was and what was wrong with it. And as Scarlet got closer she felt her heart beat even faster, causing a great lump to form in her throat. She wanted to rip her ears off to avoid hearing the cries of pain anymore, though she knew it wasn't possible. The only priority right now was to help the cat. _

_Scarlet skidded to a halt as she closed in on the cat and felt all of the blood run cold in her system. It was Reaper, and his pelt was blazing with fire! Scarlet wasn't able to catch her former mentor as he tumbled to the ground but she immediately began to push her paws against the flames, ignoring the searing pain that it sent up through her pads and up into her legs. Reaper looked so small and weak lying on the ground, which made Scarlet's heart twist in pain. Of course, she always wanted to knock this tom upside the head with a large rock, but she had known him for such a long time and she always wanted to thank him for what he taught her. _

"_Scarlet, what is going on?" A voice sounded gruffly behind her and she quickly picked up the cat that the voice belonged to. She didn't give the cat any attention though, she was too busy pushing down on the sparks that flew from Reaper's black pelt. _

"_G-Ghost, I-I…" Reaper managed to sputter before his whole body twitched and he became completely still, his flank no longer raised and his cries no longer split Scarlet's ears. She felt panic and shock grip onto her and she stared blankly down at the black tom. His dark blue eyes were now glazed over and were gazing upwards towards the sky, his mouth slightly parted, unable to get his final words through. _

"_Idiot, getting himself set on fire," a sneer sounded behind her and she whipped around to face the being who dared say it, it was the band leader, Ghost, whose pelt shone brighter than any of the others. The moon casting a silvery glow down on his pelt, making him almost a silvery-white glow himself. _

"_He did not deserve to die, Ghost!" Scarlet snapped angrily and a snort erupted from the tom, causing anger to boil up in Scarlet's stomach and her claws to bury themselves into the concrete below her._

"_Of course not Scarlet, but if he did not deserve to die, then why did he come running down the alleyway, crying like a damned idiot!?" That caused a few snickers to flow through the gathered cats, which made Scarlet's rage only grow stronger. She held back the urge to lunge at Ghost and gauge his eyes out. He was an irritating tom who could easily cause her to get heated. He was an ungrateful rat-heart who has no care for his Band-mates, in which most of them follow in suit with him and take on his ungratefulness. _

"_Let us leave little Scarlet to grieve for her mentor," Ghost hissed bitterly and turned to shoulder his way through the crowded cats, most of them sent angry glares her way but she merely curled his lips back in a beginning of a provoked snarl at them before turning her attention back down to Reaper. _

_Scarlet lowered her muzzle and, to her own surprise, began to gently lap at the tom's pelt. Many parts of his fur were missing and red, blistered skin was the only thing that was left in the flames wake. Though, as she lapped at his matted fur she also felt the roughness of something other than the fur rub up against her tongue._

_Ashes._

_Scarlet quickly spat out the little pieces that were left by the flames and she pushed a sigh through her lips. She felt disappointment now burn over her anger. Silver wasn't here to comfort her grieving heart, he was probably laughing with his friends, saying how weak she was and needed to grow up. Now grief was racking her body. Her mentor was dead, her Band didn't seem to care, and her own brother wasn't even here for her! There seemed like there was no one left who cared about her._

"_Scarlet?" She turned her head at the soft voice and her eyes met icy blue ones, they were glimmering with friendliness and softness, in which Scarlet hasn't seen since her mother, who was killed by Ghost in a fight. Though, seeing these warmth-filled eyes made her sorrow almost dry up a bit._

"_Hey, Shard," Scarlet murmured in response and turned to look back down at the motionless body that lay at her paws, she didn't even move when she felt the gray tabby settle himself down beside her. _

"_You know, that was quite impressive the way you were prodding on the flames like that," his voice almost sounded shaky and Scarlet could feel the heat evaporating from the tom's pelt. And his posture, in which he was slumped over and staring up at her, though past her, he looked almost awkward like. _

"_Well, it is not very smart, my pads are burning!" Scarlet was so distracted amongst her thoughts that she managed to push way the pain in her paws, in which she wished she could have kept it that way because now that she was in full focus in reality the burning sensation was stronger than ever. _

"_But still…" There it is again, that smirk. Scarlet always wondered if he was actually trying to smile and that smirk just came naturally, or that his smirk was actually his smile. Though, it always made her smile and made her heart feel a little bit warmer. _

"_You know Scarlet, I do not see why some cats disregard you. You are friendly, funny, and everything a cat could ask for!" Shard mewed in a slightly cheerful voice and Scarlet stared at him in disbelief, she could never imagine this tom, this hard-headed and feisty tom saying those words to her. Where did these words come from in his mind? And why would he be saying it to me?!_

"_W-Well, thanks I guess," Scarlet stuttered feeling her pelt heat up, embarrassment was cascading over her like a gigantic wave and she certainly didn't like it. This tom had his ways of making her feel embarrassed and light-hearted at the same time. Why did she have to feel like this around him? Her stomach always knotted up in front of him and she always had some type of trouble talking to him._

"_Scarlet, I have something to confess to you," Shard's blue eyes sparkled brightly in the moonlight and Scarlet turned her head away to avert the warmness that glittered in their depths. That's when she felt his tail wrap around her and felt his tongue rasp over her ears, which made her pelt heat to the limit. What is he doing!? _

"_I wanted to say that I l-love you," his voice echoed softly in Scarlet's ears and reality finally came and smacked her in the face. All of this time, the reason why he would talk to her is because he actually loved her! And that's the reason why she always felt her heart flutter upwards in her chest when she was talking to him. It felt as if her body was full of sparks while talking to him. Burning brightly like fires and sparking like embers._

_Embers._

_Yes, embers. Small, yet strong. _

3 Month Later

"_Scarlet, your eyes shine so brightly in the moonlight."_

"_Oh, you are flattering me, Shard." _

"_I know I am."_

_Humorous words spilled out in the air as Scarlet stared up at the starry sky, alongside Shard, who was pressed close to her and had his tail entwined with hers. Affection was glowing in his blue eyes as he stared down at her and she could merely purr happily at the softness in their deep depths. And this night seemed cold because of the bitter winds, but with Shard pressed so tightly against her she only felt warmth course through her. _

"_I love you so much you know that right?" Scarlet felt his warm breath billow in her ears and she lifted her muzzle so that she could rub it against his chin, purrs erupting from both of them._

"_Of course I do you big fur-ball," Scarlet teased and Shard's purr was overlapped by a playful growl, before she could react she felt him barrel into her and push her downwards. She let out a mew of protest, acting as if it was a cry full of agony and terror. While Shard continued to let out playful noises in replacement of snarls and growls. _

_Finally, his paws were pressed against her shoulders and she stared up at him with eyes wide in mock terror. He was staring down at her with his signature smirk plastered on his face and she felt the tugging on her own lips as they tried to pull backwards in a smile._

"_Do you give up!?" Shard pushed his muzzle into her face with amusement glittering in his eyes and Scarlet suppressed a sigh in defeat, in which she let her body grow limp. Though, Shard didn't climb off of her. _

"_What are you waiting for you big lump? Your paws are putting a damper on my shoulders," Scarlet wiggled as she tried to free herself from the gray tabby's grip, but his paws merely pressed harder against her shoulders. She felt confusion take over her and she tipped her head up at him._

"_What is it?" She noticed that his eyes were scanning around them and Scarlet noticed the irritation that burned in the tom's eyes. She wanted to know what was aggravating him so much._

"_Nothing," he quickly shook his head and Scarlet felt the pressure on her shoulders loosen, she rolled onto her side and rolled her shoulders blades in attempts of loosening the strained muscles. _

_Shard settled down beside her and rested his head on her neck, she could see the uneasiness that was lying in his eyes though she held her tongue. She decided to just curl up around the tabby and rest her head on his back. Her eyelids were becoming gradually heavier and she let them drape over her eyes. She pushed away the concern for Shard for now and just went on the thought of the love she felt right now. Being curled around him made everything somewhat calmer and she almost felt as if the uneasiness had drained away from Shard. _

_Before her world fell apart and dissolved into the dream world, she silently called out to the tabby through her mind._

_Goodnight, love. Sweet dreams. _

1 Month Later

_Scarlet was engulfed in blackness._

_No sound bounced off of her ears._

_No images came into viewpoint. _

_It was as if everything was almost dead._

_That's when suddenly, like a flash of lightning, her world became bright again. Images zoomed through her mind, too fast for her to catch even the slightest of glimpses at them. Her mind was becoming a whirlwind of pictures and it began to make her head throb. What was going on? What is this!?_

"_Run Scarlet, run!" A voice cried in her ears and she felt sheer terror run through her, she didn't know what was going on and she never liked that feeling. It would eat away from her and cause her to go crazy. She never liked this feeling and never will._

"_The raven will cry, while the ember will die," the voice was now lowered to a whisper now and one of the flickering pictures in her mind came to real life. It was a small fire, in which was smaller than any regular fire. It was more like an ember. Though, there was a shrill and a black creature came swooping downwards towards the ember. Scarlet recognized the winged creature as a raven. And, just like that, it flew through the flame, though as it came out on the other side the ember had dissipated. _

"_The ash will feel pain, while the shard will gain," another flickering image became visible and this time it was of the raven again, and Scarlet was able to pick out pieces of ash he clung to the raven's feathers. That's when something was flying upwards towards the bird, and there was a cry of pain as whatever was thrown upwards at the creature went through the bird. It came crashing downwards and the ash lifted from its feathers. While a bloody shard of glass lay floating through the air. _

"_You will die!" The voice was raised to a cry again and this image was thrown to Scarlet like a claw to the face, it was her and Silver. Then, in a matter of seconds Scarlet watched her image-self get attacked by this creature. Blood was everywhere and it sickened Scarlet._

_Scarlet felt herself falling back into the darkness again. Her heart was pounding in her chest and the words that the voice had said continued to relay themselves over and over again in her head. _

"_The raven will cry, while the ember will die. The ash will feel pain, while the shard will gain. You will die!"_

Half a Month Later

"_What do you mean you are having kits!?"_

"_Why do you say it like that?" _

_Shard was staring at Scarlet with fury burning in his icy eyes and Scarlet was staring at him with confusion and disbelief hiding in her own eyes depths. Her mate was pacing back and forth in front of the dumpster with a twisted emotion painted on his face._

"_I have no time for pathetic scraps of fur!" Shard glared in her direction and Scarlet took a step backwards, feeling pain grip her heart with its icy claws. Why was he acting like this? Why isn't he happy that I am giving him kits!?_

"_Just get out of my face you pathetic she-cat!" Scarlet felt her eyes widen as the stinging words reached her ears and she felt her eyes fill, Shard's eyes were burning with so much hatred and his long claws were scraping along the concrete as he continued to pace. _

"_What did I tell you? Leave!" Shard curled his lips backwards in a menacing snarl and Scarlet swiftly turned and bounded away, feeling all kinds of emotions fall down on her. Pain, sorrow, grief, anger, and even more that she couldn't count. A large lump had formed in her throat and her stomach had become a knotted mess. Her eyes were filling with water, in which she held back the urge to let her barriers break. _

_Scarlet finally collapsed in a spot where she could be in solitude, which was the place where she and Shard would curl around each other at night and sleep together. Though now, it was going to become cold and dark. She buried her face in her paws and felt her body shudder. Why did he do this to me? Why did he make me feel this pain!? I don't deserve this…_

_Scarlet slid her eyes upwards so that she could put her attention back on Shard, who was till pacing but now Silver was beside him. Scarlet felt grief overwhelm her as she continued to gaze at the two toms and she felt one thought continue to loop around in her head. Along with the many others but this one stuck out the most._

_I will still love you two. No matter what…_

* * *

**So, now we know Scarlet and Shard's back story. Pretty intense right?  
**

**QOTD: What do you think of Shard and Scarlet in this story?**


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